The Teacher: The Da Vinci Code

 Leo

Sir Leigh Teabing, as portrayed in the 2006 film The Da Vinci Code

    Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code is a famous novel about two characters named Robert Langdon and Sophie Neveu. After an Opus Dei monk named Silas (who works under the order of a secretive "Teacher") murders Jacques Saunière at the Louvre Museum in Paris, Langdon and Neveu investigate alongside the French police. Saunière has left a sort of scavenger hunt for Langdon using his blood and body in the Louvre. Langdon and Neveu then become involved in a conflict between Opus Dei and the Priory of Sion. Note that the latter is completely fictional while the former is a real group. The conflict between the two groups in the book stems from the belief that Jesus Christ had children with a woman named Mary Magdalene. In the book, Silas's motive for killing Saunière is to find the Holy Grail. Saunière is actually the leader of the Priory and was the remaining of four people who knew the location of the Holy Grail. On their search, Langdon and Neveu meet a historian named Sir Leigh Teabing. However, Teabing slowly transforms from a comic-relief character (he literally makes sex jokes when first meeting Neveu in front of Langdon) into a manipulative opportunist.

    Teabing is an interesting character. His motives seem pretty straightforward to the reader in his introduction. He is an unassuming British historian who Langdon suggests he and Neveu should consult. Teabing is very wealthy man because of his supposed inheritance from the first Duke of Lancaster. He also wields an arsenal of information on the Holy Grail, where it is later shown that his motives are to use the Holy Grail (which he believes to be the corpse of Mary Magdalene) to ruin the Vatican by proving that Jesus had children with Magdalene. In fact, his real goal isn't even to find out the truth, it's mostly just his obsession. Before meeting the protagonists, his objective was to destroy the Priory of Sion who protected the Grail. He was able to make contact with the church and hired Bishop Manuel Aringarosa (Silas's idol) and the assassin Silas. Jacques Saunière was his final target, but Saunière was able to write a cryptic message for his granddaughter (Sophie Neveu) which guides Robert Langdon in the book.

    When first meeting Langdon and Neveu, one of his first interactions with the latter is cracking jokes about virgins (this is all part of the same scene in chapter 54):

    "Teabing looked stunned. 'She doesn't know?'

    Langdon shook his head.

    The smile that grew on Teabing's face was almost obscene. 'Robert, you've brought me a virgin?'

    Langdon winced, glancing at Sophie. 'Virgin is the term Grail enthusiasts use to describe anyone who has never heard the true Grail story.'

    Teabing turned eagerly to Sophie. 'How much do you know, my dear?'

    Sophie quickly outlined what Langdon had explained earlier [...]

    'That's all?' Teabing fired Langdon a dirty look. 'Robert, I thought you were a gentleman. You've robbed her of the climax!' [...]

    Teabing already had Sophie locked in his twinkling gaze. "You are a Grail virgin, my dear. And trust me, you will never forget your first time.'"

Teabing's whole purpose seems to be to provide comic relief here, but the reader's anticipation that Teabing will be "the funny guy" enhances the realization at the end of the book. His casual and unprofessional first impression provides a contrast to Langdon's personality. Likewise, Teabing's true personality is rather contrasting compared to his first impressions. His first appearance is depicted comically as well:

"Portly and ruby-faced, Sir Leigh Teabing had bushy red hair and jovial hazel eyes that seemed to twinkle as he spoke. He wore pleated pants and a roomy silk shirt under a paisley vest. Despite the aluminum braces on his legs, he carried himself with a resilient, vertical dignity that seemed more a by-product of noble ancestry than any kind of conscious effort."

    While he does provide comic relief in the middle of this pretty intense book, reader also have to appreciate his manipulation skills. He plays different roles when in front of different characters. To Silas and Bishop Aringarosa, he is a devout believer driven by his faith (and maybe a little bit of cash). On the other hand, he is Langdon and Neveu's guardian, overlooking their fugitive status (which comes in after they do some minor tomfoolery) for the benefit of the world. Finally, to his servant Rémy Legaludec, Teabing is a co-conspirator and a trusted ally. Teabing had fully planned and exploited the Vatican and Opus Dei, allowing him to protect his innocence at every turn. The dirty work was done by the Bishop and an assassin, while the only person that knew his true identity had a peanut allergy and was conveniently found dead after drinking cognac with peanut powder in it.

Rémy Legaludec, as protrayed in the 2006 film The Da Vinci Code

    Sir Leigh Teabing is a calculating character and after reading the book twice, you have to appreciate the thoughts that were put behind Teabing's character. His mysterious aura at the beginning, his unassuming first impressions, and his betrayals at the end of the book bring out a beautifully developed shock that is near impossible to predict at first. I think the Teacher is one of the most well-developed characters in Dan Brown's literature. To be frank, he could even be considered one of the most well-developed characters in modern literature as a whole.